Strawberry Panic I: The Drabble Menace
by jetflight girl
Summary: My randomly updated collection of Strawberry Panic! drabbles. Expect shoujoai, AU, canon, fanon, crack, crossovers, cute, sad, weird and double uu tee eff are you smoking, girl? Ratings T or less.
1. A Tale of Two Knights

Well, this is the first in my planned and unplanned line of Strawberry Panic! drabbles, some more, some less serious, some outright weird. It will feature canon pairings, fanon pairings, no pairings and outright, outrageous, total complete crack pairings. Nothing particularly mature, though that may change some day. Needless to say, being a StoPan fanfic, it'll have gratuitious amounts of shoujo-ai...

Disclaimer: I don't own Strawberry Panic or the characters therein. Some may or may not be crossovers with other fandoms and, guess what, I don't own those either.

But, without further ado: Strawberry Panic I: The Drabble Menace!

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THE TALE OF TWO KNIGHTS (Amane/Hikari, Shizuma/Kaori, Shizuma/Nagisa)

The crowds went wild as the gates opened and the two knights rode through. This here was the culmination of the week-long tournament and celebrations, where the finest riders of the Kingdom of Astraea would be determined. Unsurprisingly, the grand finale was to be between Ootori Amane, Prince of Spica, and Hanazono Shizuma, the widowed Queen of Astraea.

Konohana Hikari watched with bated breath and a bit of a blush as the White Knight - for Amane indeed was atop her white steed, Star Bright, and clad in shining bright metal from head to toe - smiled and approached railing separating the arena from the audience, looking at no one but Hikari. Amane was famous for being unapproachable and somewhat cold, distancing herself from her hordes of worshippers. Hence, it had comes as no small surprise - and had caused a great deal of bad blood directed at Hikari - when the White Knight had approached the rails and accepted Hikari's ribbon on her pike. The petite blonde had felt... She could not describe what she had felt, but she was definitely walking in the air. Out of all the swooning girls, who must've numbered to hundreds, Amane had picked her to accept the ribbon from. Hikari the Shy, who barely even dared to cheer for her favourite, who almost forgot to breathe at the mere sight of the Prince of her dreams.

Her hands were slightly trembling as she took the ribbon from her hair and tied it around the pike of her beloved knight; the knight that had actually snuck off from the contestants' quarters on every evening for clandestine meetings with Hikari in the vast parks surrounding the cathedral of the contest area, walking in the starlight and holding hands. None knew of that, lest Hikari would be even more hated as she was; Lady Konohana disliked hurting the feelings of others, but she was willing to, for the sake of being with the one she loved.

Amane raised her pike in salute after the ribbon was firmly in place, all the while looking Hikari in the eye. The jealous eyes of dozens, if not hundreds, were fixed on her, but the blonde barely even noticed that, lost in Amane's eyes, until the Prince slammed her vizor shut and turned around to meet her opponent.

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The Black Knight, Queen Shizuma, had her vizor lowered already when coming through the gate, much to the disappointment of her numerous fans that longed to gace upon the majestic face of the silver-haired beauty. Her jet black full plate armour reflected no sunlight and her matchingly coloured horses barding was just the same - black. She let her horse walk around slowly, to spend the time until Amane performed the obligatory rites of asking for blessings from that young woman, whatever her name was.

Queen Shizuma herself never accepted any ribbons, despite being the only person in the entire realm who had even more admirers and fans than prince Amane had. At one time, she had taken almost randomly, turning to the next girl before every match, playing and toying around with her numerous admirers. But then, one day, Shizuma had seen Her... Timid and relatively small, she wasn't waving her ribbon like those around her, just looking at Shizuma with an honest and open expression, rather than mindlessly admiring like so many others. That day, Shizuma had extended her pike to the black-haired angel and from that day forth, always turned to her before the match.

It had actually been several jousts before Shizuma actually worked up the courage to look up the silent beauty. Courage! Her, Hanazono Shizuma, who changed girls more often than most people change shirts, had been nervous to the point of her hands shaking before approaching the black-haired angel.

Kaori. Sakuragi Kaori was the name of the angel, and Shizuma had been smitten immediately, much to the surprise and disappointment of many an admirer and friend alike. It was love at first sight and the names and faces of Shizuma's conquests faded as soon as she looked at Kaori that evening, outside in the garden around Astraea. The younger girl was standing in a gazebo, leaning against the rails and looking up at the growing moon with a dreamy expression. They then looked each other in the eye, and for two years, Shizuma walked on clouds.

Now, she was alone and withdrawn. She would've gladly foregone the tournament, if her chief advisor and best friend, Rokujou Miyuki had let her. But it was her duty, so she did it. Letting her horse wander about freely while Amane was breaking the hearts of her veritable horde of fans by focusing on Hikari, Shizuma scanned the crowds from behind the vizor. She let her gaze drift over the crowd and almost turned to see how far along Amane was, when she suddenly did a double take, almost thinking herself insane.

But no. The face in the crowds was a veritable Angel, for certain, but not Kaori. Though, she thought... Maybe. Just maybe. At a momentous impulse, she guided her horse towards the tribunes and, to the shock of pretty much all the gathered crowd, lifted her vizor as she extended her pike towards the red-headed angel. The crowds went almost silent and the redhead's eyes wide, but after a moment of paralyze, she hastily grabbed her ribbon and tied it around Shizuma's pike. The Queen was still not smiling, but her expression had softened as she raised her pike in salute, slammed the vizor shut and rode to meet Prince Amane. 


	2. When did it become a company again?

Note: I'm a fan of Amane/Hikari. But I DID feel sorry for Yaya-chan.

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WHEN DID IT BECOME A COMPANY AGAIN? (Amane/Hikari/Yaya)

By and large, Amane wasn't very partial when it came to weather. However, warm spring days like that were favourable for the fact that they enabled walks in nature, or just sitting on the grass and letting the rays of the relatively warm sun caress them. She enjoyed sitting at the small clearing, looking at the clouds wander, or Hikari laying on the grass, eyes half-closed and head on Amane's lap. It was so quiet and tranquil that Amane felt she could forget herself for hours and hours.

Of course, there were some people who's idea of a fun time did not evolve around sitting peacefully and holding hands. One such particular individual was sneaking up on Amane and Hikari right now and before long, two hands snaked themselves around Amane and appeared in front of Hikari's face as a sudden "Boo!" sounded from behind them, causing the blonde to jump slightly.

"Y-Yaya-chan!" Hikari complained, sitting up.

"Got you," the dark-haired girl grinned mischievously. "But one day... One day I'll catch YOU off guard, too!" she continued, looking Amane in the eyes with a mock-menacing look.

The older girl smiled slightly and humoured Yaya with a half-hearted "Maybe." Yaya responded with a "humph" and a quick kiss, before turning to Hikari and greeting her with a kiss as well. "So what are we doing here?" she queried, sitting down next to Amane.

The "Rider Prince" just watched on, still somewhat wondering how they had come to that particular point. When had the bad blood and rivalry over Hikari turned into a whole opposite emotion? When had Amane and Yaya stopped being enemies and become lovers instead, while not turning away from Hikari? At times, she found the whole notion strange (and certainly, they all had agreed not to go out of their way to advertise this particular arrangement to the general public).

As she watched Yaya launch into a long and wordy explanation of the latest happenings, Amane smiled. 'Strange, yes, but likeable,' she thought as she stopped Yaya's stream of babble with a kiss. 


	3. Nagisa the Vampire Slayer

Warning: Crack up ahead. Also, Joss Whedon&The Gang own the concept of Slayers, Watchers and so on.

In every generation, there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer. This generation has one, too. She is known as

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NAGISA THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (hinted Shizuma/Nagisa)

Rokujou Miyuki sighed and buried her face in her arms. She loved her job, she really did. Knowing that her wisdom and experience were invaluable in the saving of hundreds, if not thousands, of lives daily; knowing that she is doing something worthwhile for the world, even if it DID tend to leave her own needs in the background. She had not failed in her duty once - well, almost, she corrected, recalling an unfortunate incident with a particular vampire overlord that took her hostage, but she preferred not to remind herself that too much - and had upheld the traditions of the Watchers Council to the word.

She just wished she could say the same about her trainee, Aoi Nagisa, the Vampire Slayer. Someone out there had a truly twisted sense of humour out there, to rest the fate of the world upon the shoulders of a teenaged girl that was mortally frightened of darkness unless it was her own bedroom. Although Miyuki was not so certain on the latter, since the Slayer seemed to share the bed suspiciously often with her best friend, Suzumi Tamao.

So, bluntly put, Miyuki had to "man the walls" herself far more often than she would've liked. True, her mission was made much easier by the mysterious souled vampire, Shizuma, who seemed to mysteriously appear whenever there was trouble, and she subtly called upon the aid of Prince Ootori Amane every once in a while. Nagisa's friends insisted on helping out as well, but, despite minor hints of Tamao's latent magical powers, they were more often hinderance than help.

"Miyuki-sama?" Nagisa asked tentatively, waking the blue-haired Watcher from her thoughts. "Is something wrong?"

"No, no, it's fine," Miyuki said with a small smile. The girl was willing enough... just not particularly brave. "Now, let's go over the details here..." she said, gesturing towards a map in front of her.

Rokujou Miyuki was not a quitter. Somehow, someway, she'd make the Slayer understand that the Darkness was supposed to be afraid of her, not the other way around.

'Well, and sometimes make the Darkness take Nagisa seriously. That would be hard,' Miyuki thought as Nagisa screamed in startle and almost jumped into the ceiling as a pair of cold hands snaked themselves around the Slayer's waist and a certain silver-haired vampire sensually whispered in Nagisa's ear:

"I missed you, my lovely Nagisa-chan." 


	4. Yaoi Goodness

0.o Yaoi? In Strawberry Panic! 0.o ? THE Strawberry Panic!, which has zero male characters in it?

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YAOI GOODNESS

Thud. Thud. Thud. The wooden practice swords clashed against each other, accompanied by grunts, as the two opponents were circling each other. This match between Amane and Kaname was dragging and by now, most of Spica had gathered around the practice circle where the two were dueling. Even the student council president, Toumori Shion, was among the audience, though unlike most of the fangirls, she was keeping her expression strictly neutral.

This time, neither was giving up. With a shout, the more aggressive Kaname launched herself at Amane, but the latter, fighting in a more controlled manner, blocked the hits. Wood hit wood and the two exchanged several blows that the other blocked before stopping to draw breath again, both watching the other carefully.

The surrounding fangirls didn't really know why the two were dragging their practice match so long today; most likely, no one but Shion and Kiyashiki Momomi knew that, who had the privilege of sitting close to them.

Again, Kaname attacked with great fury, and Amane blocked several times, not managing to get a counterstrike of her own. Before she found an opening, though, Kaname's berserker-like attacks bore fruit and Amane's practice sword broke. The duelists, unprepared for that, both lost balance and landed in the center of the practice circle, with Kaname on top of the other short-haired celebrity.

"Got you," Kaname grinned in a predatory way as both breathed heavily, then leaned forth and captured Amane's lips in a passionate kiss (causing many a faint and nosebleed among the gathered fangirls). The lovers' quarrel was over; all wrongs had been forgiven again. All was well again between what the students of Spica were starting to refer to as the "All-girl school resident yaoi couple".

"Kaname!" Amane chided after coming back to her sense and pushing the other short-haired girl off her. "Do you mind, we've got audience!" she hissed.

"So?" Kaname asked with the most innocent of expressions. "Never did bother me."

"Well it bothers THEM," Amane replied, nodding towards the audience that had their eyes glued at the two boyish celebrities. Only Shion and a few others had gone to attend to the fainted girls.

It was just another day in the life of the yaoi fangirls of St. Spica Girl's Institute. 


	5. Entirely Accidental

NOTES: Heavy spoilers for episode 12 and THAT scene. No, not that, the other one. Yeah, that's the one I meant. Some dialogue borrowed from Doremi subs, so big thanks to them for their lovely work.

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ENTIRELY ACCIDENTAL (Amane/Nagisa)

"But I sure was surprised," Nagisa said somewhat apologetically, the sponge in her hand coming to a halt. "You didn't look like Ootori-senpai at all."

"Just call me Amane," the star rider replied almost automatically, then looked at her blouse. "I wonder if this is a bit too casual?" She returned to scrubbing her horse and added. "It's because I thought there's no one here anymore."

"Oh yeah... You aren't going back home?" Nagisa asked, looking at the direction of Amane's voice from the other side of the horse.

"I'm not," Amane replied and moved to caress the nose of the white steed. "Because if I go too far away, I'll just worry him. All the other members left, and I'm left here. It's more relaxed this way," she smiled.

Nagisa blushed for a moment, then added in a demi-apologetic tone: "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Umm... But don't you have other things to do?"

"I've been studying since morning, so I want to move around for a change," Nagisa said, looking at the ground.

With Star Bright clean, Amane stashed away the equipment and leaned against the fence. Nagisa sat on the upper plank of the fence and explained her studies with Miyuki and Shizuma in the morning. "She looked so solemn then..." she finished the tale.

"I see," Amane nodded. "Rokujou-san, she..." the rider began, but Nagisa cut in.

"It must be because I was too stupid," the redhaired 4th year explained with her trademark nervous smile.

"No, I don't think so," Amane replied seriously. "Miator's Student Council President is a very prestigious role. She has already decided to marry right after she graduates, with the fiancee chosen for her since birth." She shook her head in distaste.

"I see..." Nagisa said, her spirit not exactly lifted by the tale.

"Being such a famous person, she's always being troubled," Amane said, staring at the ground. "You really are a very mysterious girl," she added after a short pause, turning to Nagisa.

"Huh?" the redhead replied, turning so fast that she lost her balance on the fence and fell off, landing on her back with a yelp.

"Nagisa-kun?" Amane looked after her in startle, getting up.

"Ow..." was all that the younger girl replied.

"Are you okay?" the bluette asked, moving to the other side of the fence and kneeled next to the 4th year girl.

"Yes, somewhat," Nagisa said with a wince and opened her right eye. "I'm sorry..." she added, extending her hands in hopes that Amane will help her up.

But the upperclassman just leaned closer to Nagisa, looking into her eyes, their faces mere centimetres apart. "Why is it," she said quietly. "All of Miator's students that I know are like birds in a cage. Except for you. You really are an amazing girl," she spoke as Nagisa felt blood rushing into her face, though if it was from the proximity of the handsome Spica student, her words or something else entirely, she did not know.

"A-Amane-san?" Nagisa asked uncertainly, looking into the reddish brown eyes of the older girl. She found herself frozen in a mix of nervousness and something else she could not place. It was... it was something strange. It was a feeling she had only felt with Shizuma before and even then, it had been more nervousness and fear before the silver-haired beauty than anything else.

Amane, for her part, found herself lost in Nagisa's eyes as well. Her thoughts were coming as if through a thick mist, slow and incoherent and the only thing she could properly concentrate on were the eyes... Those beautiful eyes before her, wide with nervousness and... anticipation? Yes, that had to be it...

Their concsiousness barely even registered as the distance between their lips closed and Amane's landed on Nagisa's. For a moment, the redhead was frozen, but then her eyes closed and she responded to the kiss, timidly at first, but growing bolder with every passing second.

Neither knew how much time passed, but at one moment, they both opened their eyes in startle, as if only now realizing what they were doing. Amane bolted up and, half-stumbling, backed away from Nagisa, landing on the ground in startle. Nagisa backed away with a yelp as well and the two sat on the ground, staring at each other and breathing hard.

"I... I'm sorry, I..." Amane stammered.

"N-no, I shouldn't have... umm..." Nagisa stammered in turn.

"No, I..." Amane got up and looked away, feeling her face turning red. "That, umm... I shouldn't have done that."

"M-me neither, I..." Nagisa said, scrambling up as well.

"It was... umm, entirely accidental. Yes, an accident," Amane nodded firmly, looking at Nagisa.

"Yes... an accident," Nagisa nodded vigorously. "But, umm, I sh-should get back to my lessons. I, uhh, see you," she said, rushing away.

"Right. I, uhh, kept you long enough," Amane replied as the redhead ran pass her, back towards the dorms.

'Get a grip of yourself, woman,' the bluette sighed as she watched the redhead disappear in the distance and slapped herself. But it had just been entirely accidental and no one had to know.

...Even if Shizuma did narrow her eyes suspiciously when Nagisa and Amane, every time they accidentally ran into each other, simply excused themselves nervously and headed in pointedly different directions. But it was entirely accidental, and Amane stuck by that. 


	6. Just Miyuki

Time for some Miyuki-centric drabbles, with a bit of Momomi thrown in as well. And no, even I am not as cracked as to pair the two up. I'm not sure if I'm entirely happy with this piece, but I figured I won't become any happier with it unless someone lets me know what they think of it...

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JUST MIYUKI (Shizuma/Kaori, Miyuki)

She appears as a vision. A ghost out of another era or another reality. And she sure has the paleness to match the image of the ghost.

But she isn't. She's flesh and blood, as Shizuma can feel, having fallen on her knees before the raven-haired girl and sobbing quietly in her chest. Tears of relief, of joy and... I swallow and wipe at my own eyes.

I smile at the two and leave them to their privacy. Better to do something to distract the schools some before the rumour of her return spreads; it would give them some time to be alone and get out of sight if they so feel like. Of course, no distraction would delay it indefinitely. In fact, I don't think the rumour would stop even if I blew up the schools - not that I would, mind you - and by the end of the day, everyone on Astraea Hill, Miator, Spica and Lulim alike, students and faculty, all will speak of one thing:

Sakuragi Kaori has recovered and returned!

No one, not even Shizuma, who was hoping the most, was sure it would work. The long, complex and risky operation, where more things could go wrong than any of us could even think of. Yet... yet it did. At tremendous costs, but it worked. Costs for Kaori and her family, to me and to many others as well.

When her situation worsened, someone, somewhere - to this day I don't know who exactly - dug out some information on an operation that theoretically could save Kaori's life and health. It was a slim chance, but it was a chance - something that would not exist without it. And it was costly. Most of us will never even SEE such amounts of money all at once that was required for it. The Sakuragis gave everything they had, many others gave what they could, as well, and Shizuma "extorted" - her wording, not mine - everything she possibly could.

Yet, that was not enough, so I appealed to my own failure of a family. The Rokujous, that huge commercial empire that my father wanted my fiancee - pardon, ex-fiancee - to lead. They refused to give a single yen, despite all my pleas and arguments.

And I snapped. I, Rokujou Miyuki, with a reputation far and wide for being always polite, calm, collected and well-mannered. I snapped, letting out everything I had held inside during all those years, laying it all on my wretched excuse of a father. If he could not give a damn about my friend living or dying, why on earth should I waste my life so he could pursue his selfish dream? I didn't know I knew that many curses and so many ways to denounce a person. Long story short, I renounced my engagement, my allegiance to my father and everything else that had ever got anything to do with him and my family. It would've come to blows, I think, if Shizuma and my ex-fiancee had not been there to separate us.

In retrospect, I think it was rash and foolish - yet, I can't rightly say that I regret it. It was... liberating. I don't think anyone in the school - save Shizuma, of course - knows the full story and I don't think the Headmistress would be very happy if she heard it all, but... Strangely, I don't give a damn.

That's not to say they haven't noticed. When I started insisting that people call me Miyuki, and preferably without the "-sama" part, many wondered why that was. I joked that it's because I'm starting to forget my given name if everyone always calls me "Rokujou-sama" and left the rest to their imagination. My actions would be frowned upon, but I don't think I care very much anymore.

I look over my shoulder and see Shizuma still holding Kaori and I smile. Yes, I don't care - even I will break rules and traditions if it comes to my friends and their happiness. I turn my eyes forward again and start walking back up towards the path towards the dorms, when I see a white uniform of Spica standing before me, watching pass me, at the duo I left behind.

Kiyashiki Momomi. Member of the student council of St. Spica's Institute. Firm supporter of my archrival, Toumori Shion. A snob firmly convinced in the superiority of herself and of Spica.

And an unexpected angel in a white miniskirt. I glance over my shoulder as Shizuma and Kaori disappear out of sight and stop when I reach Momomi.

"All is well?" she asks in a quiet, forcedly emotionless tone.

I nod. "It would seem so." On an impulse, I take her hand with both of mine. She looks surprised as she turns to look at me. "Arrigato," I say simply, before letting her go and walking onwards.

It's our secret. Only a few know of the Kiyashiki contribution to saving Kaori's life - with no small sum, nearly half of the needed money - and none but Momomi know the motives behind it. Whatever it was, I am grateful.

"You're welcome," she says very quietly, barely audibly, as I walk towards the Ichigo dorms, just being me.

Just Miyuki. 


	7. This is heaven and I'm in it

NOTE: Direct continuation of "Just Miyuki", though I suppose it's equally readable as a stand-alone.

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THIS IS HEAVEN AND I'M IN IT (Shizuma/Kaori)

Despite her half-hearted protests, I insisted on carrying her back into the dorms. "It's not that I don't think you can," I explained to her. "But I have you back for good and I have every intention of spoiling and doting you for a while," I finished with a grin.

She smiled slightly in return and dried what was left of my tears. She knew better than to argue with me when I was in this mood. She felt so light in my arms as I carried her; had she been so weightless before, or was it a side-effect of the operation? Or maybe I was just not feeling any weight as it was slowly TRULY sinking in to me that the girl that I loved more than anyone in this world, who I thought I would lose forever, was alive and well, here gathered in my arms. I would have closed my eyes in fear that it's but a dream, but I most likely would've just stumbled and we'd had fallen.

As she gently placed her arms around me, I again felt tears threatening to fall, yet also as if I could fly on the wings of pure happiness. It was a strange feeling; but I had Kaori in my arms, and that was better than anything else could ever be.

I manage to slip inside the dorms unnoticed and before long, we make our way to Kaori's old room, all set and ready for her return. I have arranged flowers, some brightly-coloured, some white, and tidied up her room perfectly. I said I would be doting her and I absolutely meant it. As I laid her on her bed, she smiled and shook her head while I busily set out to prepare tea. Once that was done, I was preparing to arrange some cookies to go with it, but Kaori just sat up on her bed and commanded me to sit down as well.

We stayed thus till the morning, not even leaving the room and only getting up for more tea every once in a while. She wanted me to tell her EVERYTHING. All that had been going on while she was gone, every bit and piece of gossip around here. I know her well; I can tell that mostly, she listened so intently because she wanted me to keep my mind busy, but I didn't mind. So I tell her, in detail, about all the happenings I can think of. I have to correct myself a lot, and many a detail I remember only later and, I'm certain, my tale is very confusing to listen to, but Kaori doesn't complain, only asks questions and offers comments every once in a while.

When night falls, we stay in her room and share her bed. We do not go beyond a few simple kisses, but for tonight, just holding her hand is enough. The silence is comfortable and not long after, I hear Kaori's breathing turn even. I squeeze her hand lightly and lay next to her, watching her sleep.

This is heaven and I'm in it. Nothing could compare to it. Rest of the world be damned, we'll deal with them tomorrow. 


	8. No more need for hostility

NOTE: Continuation of "Just Miyuki" and "This is heaven and I'm in it".

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NO MORE NEED FOR HOSTILITY

It went against my better judgement, really. I had ashamed my family and, after witnessing my father coldly and snidely remark that he doesn't give a damn that my friend will - WILL, not MIGHT - die without money for the operation, I must say that I would no longer put anything beyond him, including kidnapping me. I'm probably paranoid, but, as Shizuma put it: "It's not paranoia when everyone IS out to get you."

Yet, here I am, sitting face to face with Katashi in a non-descript cafe. I'm momentarily amused by thinking what my family and their sycophant lackies would say if they saw me and him sitting in such a place, hardly a high-class place as it'd be "proper" to dine in.

I glance a look around us as our teas arrive. There are only a few people beside us in here - a lone, old man looking out the window, two young people who I assume are a couple and a young boy with them. And a group of three young men at a corner table, dressed in non-descript, casual clothes, sitting quietly without conversing amongst each other.

"So... What is it so urgent that you wanted to talk about?" I ask coldly, turning to Katashi.

He just smiles. "Oh, this and that. Details, mostly. I'm not here on behalf of your father, nor mine, if that's what you fear."

He's so calm and collected. It's part of what I always hated him for. I have avoided him for years, but when we did have to spend time together, nothing could ever get a reaction out of him. Even when I made outrageous demands, he always just reacted with a tempered smile, as if it was he who was to be the docile, compliant housewife, not me. It made it even hard to hate him for being there to ruin my life.

He had even smiled calmly through my outburst in the Rokujou mansion and even when I renounced my engagement to him, then stopped my father from attacking me physically, just as Shizuma stopped me.

"Well, I'm listening," I say.

"First off, I wanted to thank you," he states. My surprise must be evident in my face, for he adds. "For being strong enough to stand up to your father. It was quite an outburst, yet, you were stronger than I was, in the end."

I blink, unsure what to reply. Out of all the scenarios I had imagined, Katashi thanking me for renouncing the engagement was not one of them.

"Yes, you were strong," he adds, seeing that I'm still surprised. "Did you think that I really want to be dictated who to marry? I used to think that it was everyone against me, even you. It was easy to hate you then, for getting in the way of my life. I'm not sure if I ever even really realized that you were a victim, not the criminal, until you and your father almost came to blows."

"You... you did not want to marry me?" I ask, still trying to process it all.

"I hardly even know you, Miyuki!" he replies. "Though lately I think I don't know you at all. I, too, have a life, and a girl that I love. And I'm pretty sure you've fancied someone, too... Though, in the all-girl school..." he cuts himself short and shakes his head. "It doesn't matter. It matters that thanks to your strength, we're both free. I kind of feel as if I'm looking at you for the first time in my life. I always made the image of you in my head as something ugly. Not by looks, but by personality. A snake out to ruin me, rob me and Yumiko of our future." He snorts. "How unjust can one be?"

I smile for the first time since I got a call from him, asking to meet. "Quite. I thought much the same of you, to be honest. In fact, I was sure you'd try to convince me to come back or something even today."

Our eyes lock and his smile disappears for once. "No," he finally says. "No. Miyuki... I owe you. Big. Though you did not mean it, you've set my heart free and for that, I owe you. Owe you big. If there's ever anything I can do for you, just let me know. I'll help you if I can."

I sit back and sip my tea. It was unexpected. All of it was. Looking back, I must say that it makes sense - it would be ridiculous to think that he would have no life of his own, and he'd simply be waiting to be married to someone he doesn't really know.

So finally, I smile and relax. "Well, you're welcome. If you and Yumiko find your happiness in life, I'll rest easier knowing that I wasn't totally foolish in my outburst."

Katashi waves his hand dismissively. "I was there, you know. I know why you did it. With an attitude like this, I must say I'm glad I won't have HIM as my father-in-law," he speaks. "Umm... How is your friend anyway?"

I smile at the thought of Kaori. "We... uhh, got the money from someone else. Kaori's operation was successful and she's back in school, though she has to repeat a year. But at least she is alive and well, though, according to the doctors, any sort of physical activity beyond short walks is forbidden for quite a while yet. Shizuma and her are happy, though... Even if Kaori and I both have to drag Shizuma along and almost literally force her to participate in school-work."

He nods. "I'm glad your friend is alright. I, ehh, I would've helped out, but I'm afraid there's little but an old and prominent name behind our family. I could've at least repaid some... but I guess I'll owe you now."

We are silent for a moment, staring into out almost empty cups. "So..." he begins. "Now that we're no longer engaged, we have no more need for hostility, do we? Think we could give friendship a try?"

I laugh and nod. "Sure," I say, and we shake hands. 


	9. The Day They Forgot

NOTE: Another crossover. Yami to Boushi to Hon no Tabibito this time.

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THE DAY THEY FORGOT

Chikaru sighed and stretched contentedly. This wasn't all that bad, she mused, although she'd surely be getting "mixed reviews" on the developments of her personal life. But, as the name said, it was her PERSONAL life, and the ex-president of Lulim student council never concerned herself much with gossip regarding her.

She smiled as she played with the mass of hair on the pillow next to her, remembering the first time they met. Looking after the passing trio, Chikaru had taken Amane's arm and whispered: "My, that silver-haired girl certainly looks good." Amane had responded with a single, non-decipherable syllable, as she always did when Chikaru brought up the topic of Girls To Like. Chikaru didn't think Amane ever even noticed anyone but Hikari in That Way.

The Lulim graduate also remembered the first time she made an idiot out of herself, when she approached the silver-haired girl's blonde friend and attempted to strike up a conversation with her, only to find that the girl was mute. Rather, the tall, dark-haired girl - the 3rd member of their trio - stepped between them rather rudely and dismissed Chikaru none too politely, saying that Hatsumi - apparently the name of the blonde girl - was not available for conversations. That had miffed Chikaru, who, not particularly politely either, had asked if the blonde girl doesn't speak for herself. The whole thing got rather embarrassing when the dark&tall one told Chikaru that Hatsumi is mute and Chikaru should mind her own business. Luckily, Amane stepped in, excused Chikaru and took the ex-president away to have her foot removed from her mouth.

But Chikaru managed to make a fool out of herself once more, when she finally noticed the silver-haired girl again and went to strike up a conversation with her directly. That one was more informative, though, as they ended up sitting at a cafe and having tea together. Among others, Chikaru discovered that Arya, too, loved costume designs and cosplaying, and that they both were observant and perceptive people and that both had often been patching up their friends' relationships. Chikaru also discovered, amidst casual speak, that Arya, too, was gay. But the whole thing was marred by one additional little detail that she found out:

Arya wasn't a silver-haired girl, after all, just a very feminine guy who, at that day, had decided to pull off a very, VERY convincing cross-dressing cosplay.

But they became good friends nevertheless and, in a way, Chikaru actually preferred that. It was nice to have someone to discuss their various hobbies with, especially since, while Amane was certainly a good friend, they had almost nothing in common beyond age and Astraea background, and a lot of people were unwilling to look past Chikaru's gayness. The kind of amount of matching interests as Chikaru and Arya had was rare. At some point, both confessed that they wished the other was of the other gender, but they didn't let it get in the way of their friendship.

Then, a random university party became a day to change some lives forever. It was the day that Chikaru and Arya reached the point where they forgot; forgot that they were both gay and of the opposite sex. Forgot that had both determined to be friend despite that.

Yet, there were no regrets, Chikaru thought with another grin as she kissed the top of the silvery head, cuddled closer to Arya's warm body and drifted off to sleep. 


	10. Coming Out On Top

NOTE: Quoting classics: "ZOMG CHIKARU!" So, yes. Chikaru.

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COMING OUT ON TOP

Chikaru NEVER lost. EVER. She always played it cool and always came out on top, no matter what she was doing. When the odds looked impossible or unlikely to be in Chikaru's favour, she simply didn't accept the challenge and left with her dignity.

Of course, things always became more difficult when she was thrust into a situation without her having a say in it, but thus far, she still had managed to come out on top of things. That had built her a reputation of near-perfection; she was sure that if she had wanted to, she could have paired up with the endearingly goofy and cute Kizuna and successfully run for Etoile. Chikaru won, just because she could. And because she knew how to avoid impossible odds.

So one could imagine her frustration when one day, she was thrust into near impossible odds. True, none but herself knew it, but Chikaru did not like lying to herself, either, nor lose to herself. So one night, when she was laying awake in her room with her heads filled with one single person, she knew she had just been thrust into a situation where it was VERY difficult to come out of on top, no pun intended.

Chikaru had seen her before, too, naturally. It was kind of difficult not to, seeing as she was potentially the most famous person from Astraea, outside the school anyway. But the day before the first sleepless night... Well, it all was a long story, but it involved faulty footwear, Chikaru stumbling on stairs and almost falling towards potential harm.

Except for Her... at the right place at the right time, two strong arms caught Chikaru firmly in their embrace and held her tight while they both regained their balance. Brown eyes met red, and for a moment, Chikaru was conscious of nothing but those eyes... the beautiful red eyes, filled with worry - worry for Chikaru. She even missed the question: "Are you alright?"

When Chikaru returned to the real world, she hastily straightened herself and bowed slightly. "I'm sorry," she said. The heat in her face was probably written off as embarrasment over the fall. "I should be more careful. Sorry for causing your trouble."

"It's okay," She smiled and placed her hand on Chikaru's shoulder, causing the blush on the brunette's face deepen. "I'm just glad I was here."

That day, they didn't even see each other anymore, yet Chikaru could not steer her mind elsewhere, nor did she properly sleep that night. For a time, she tried suppressing the feeling. It was foolish, they barely knew each other. And Chikaru was certain that She would've done the same to anyone else - she just caught a girl that happened to have a faulty shoe and stumble, the brunette scolded herself.

Yet... the thought did not leave her mind. Whenever she happened to meet Her, her pulse quickened and her mouth went dry. It became very obvious, very soon: Chikaru had been dragged into a situation by her own heart, and it was a situation that she needed to come out of on top, so to speak. So, being a rational mind that she was, Chikaru started forming a plan, including graphics, tables, schemes and plan details. Almost 30 pages of her A4-format diary, more precisely.

Simple seduction of course would not work. Not that Chikaru doubted her own charms and appeal, but even if she DID get the chance to commence that plan, it probably wouldn't give any results beyond lots and lots of awkwardness.

Fangirling was out as well, She had more of those than the Etoile had hair. Chikaru would stand out in THAT crowd about as much as a Chinese man in Beijing.

And so on, until Chikaru finally decided on classics - friendship, getting to know one another, testing the waters, making the move. It took a while, and effort, and much teasing from the other members of the Transformation club (yes, even Pashibaru wisecracked at times), but in the end, She too warmed up. The Ice Princess, the Unapproachable... She turned out to be approachable after all, and in the end, it was HER that asked Chikaru out for dinner, not the other way around. Not quite what Chikaru had been planning, but close enough, she figured. Or, at least, her heart was the one that blurted out "I would love to!" before the brain even managed to catch up.

So, Chikaru thought with a smile as she shuddered slightly from the latent cold of the eve, she had come out on top of things again. Even if it was not literally, as she was decidedly shorter than Her and the brunette was nestled tightly against the bluette on the train seat, with Her arm and jacket wrapped around Chikaru's shoulder. But it's the principle that mattered, and in this challenge, Chikaru vs. her heart, both were winning as she looked upwards and said:

"Amane?"

And as the star rider of Spica turned to look at Chikaru, their lips met in a gentle, loving kiss. 


	11. Crash

NOTE: Takes place in the same reality as "Entirely Accidental, though I wouldn't go as far as to call it "direct continuation". So... indirect continuation?

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CRASH (hinted Nagisa/Amane)

"Nagisa!"

She didn't think, she didn't calculate. There was no time to. Putting all her years of athletic training into action, Amane sprinted forth, under the giant falling decorative plate that was threatening to crush the redheaded Miator student.

It was as if the whole world slowed down. The horror-filled faces of the students around her blurred into a mist and she herself had never felt so slow. She wouldn't make it, she felt with dreadful certainty. She wouldn't make it and the huge wooden plate would crush them both; they'd be lucky if they'd be left alive and not be permanently disabled.

But she did not give up. She'd at least do her best. Maybe... maybe if she grabbed Nagisa, she could fling the redhead out of the way and save Nagisa, at least.

There. Nagisa was just in front of her, staring at the falling plate in paniced paralysis. Amane could afford no mistakes now, or it'd cost them both dearly. Her strong arms reached around Nagisa's slim waist and, pulling the younger girl tightly against her body, Amane lifted the girl in the air as she continued her mad dash underneath impending doom.

With inhuman strength born of desperation, Amane covered the last few metres in a single leap, just before the scenery piece crashed to the ground. Searing pain shot through her leg as it twisted into an unnatural position at the jump, but when they crashed to the ground, the loud and heavy crash of the shattering scenery was behind them, rather than on them.

For a moment following the crash, everything was silent. Amane could hear nothing but the laboured breathing of Nagisa and herself as two pairs of red eyes met. Memories of that midday during the summer break came as vividly as it had been just yesterday. Of the softness of Nagisa's lips against hers, of the way time stopped for her as they kissed. Nagisa's eyes were wide as well and with a certainty she could not explain, Amane just KNEW that the redhead was thinking the same thing.

For a moment, Amane found herself close to leaning forth and kissing Nagisa again; the people around them had disappeared into some sort of mist and she couldn't even remember anyone else being around.

"Are you okay?"

Those three words brought them both back to reality; a reality far less pleasant (although, had Amane acted out on her desire, the reality later would've become even worse than that). Amane sat up and hissed as pain shot through her leg again and she shook her head. "I think I may have sprained my ankle," she said as Nagisa took in the scene of destruction that she thought her fault.

The fuzz about them again faded into the background as Amane contemplated Nagisa. No, it was a ridiculous thought. The girl had eyes only for Shizuma, just as Amane had for Hikari.

But then... why had they been so close to kissing, once again? 


	12. Bleached!

NOTE: Crossover crack continues. I guess this isn't really shoujo-ai, but given the examples from both series, we can safely say that there'd be ample amounts of subtext if I were to drag this into a full-length. And, before you ask, no, I won't do that.

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BLEACHED!

The blue-haired stranger fell on her knees as the wounded Hollow drew back and wailed in pain. The demonic creature was wounded and beaten back for a moment, but the Shinigami was out of commission. After a moment, she fell flat on her face and her grip on her katana released.

"Shinigami!" the redhead called out.

"You fool..." the downed Death God squeezed between laboured, pained breaths. "You should already know your strength is nothing against that... Or did you think it would all end smoothly if you just gave it your soul?" With that, the stranger lifted her head, looking at the redhead's stunned face. "At this rate, we're all just waiting to be it's prey."

Dragging herself on all fours, the Shinigami crawled to a lamp post and rested her back against it. "Do you... want to save your family?" she asked, her voice strained with the effort.

"Of course!" the human replied. "Is there a way?"

"There's only one," the bluette replied quietly. "You... must become a Shinigami!" Ignoring the startled face of the human, she continued. "Thrust this zanpakuto through your heart and I will pour my powers into you." The Hollow raised it's head again, preparing to attack. "I don't know if this will work. But there isn't any other way."

The Hollow began approaching as the human hesitated for a small moment, then said. "Give me your sword, Shinigami."

"I'm not 'Death God'," the bluette replied. "I'm Suzumi Tamao."

The Hollow charged as the human took the blade in her hands and pointed it towards her heart. "I am Aoi Nagisa."

The sword was driven home. 


End file.
